Killua, Trouble You're Not Worth
by 0WannabeWriter0
Summary: The girl, Leorio, Kurapica, and Gon are only halfway through infiltrating Kukuru Mountain to bring back Killua after the Hunter Exam. The whole circumstance almost seems too much work for the four to handle on behalf of one person. Almost.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I, 0WannabeWriter0, do not own Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter X Hunter, his characters, nor his storylines.

**Author's Note:** The girl's name and history are unrevealed, so her identity is "the girl." How she came to travel with Gon, Killua, Kurapica, and Leorio is unrevealed. Her personality and character are gradually revealed as she journeys through Kukuru Mountain.

**Previous Action:** During the last task of the Hunter Exam, Killua went face-to-face with Illumi and was deeply affected to the point of leaving the exam of his own accord. He then ended the life of a fellow examinee and was automatically withdrawn from the examination procedures. With nowhere else to go, Killua returned to his home.  
The girl, Leorio, Kurapica, and Gon are working their way through Kukuru Mountain to find Killua. And though they will never admit it, they are paying the Zaoldyecks a visit to give Killua some support. However, the four pursuers are only halfway through infiltrating the Zaoldyeck property and their strengths are flagging. It is almost too much work for four people to handle on behalf of one person. _Almost_.

/ \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\

The girl, Leorio, Kurapica, and Gon had second thoughts about finding Killua after seeing how strict Canaria, the guardian of the Zaoldyeck inner gardens were in keeping intruders out.

"Canaria looks twelve… only. So young and serious," Kurapica remarked to Gon, Leorio, and the girl.

"Letting us through's not gonna kill her," Leorio grumbled.

"Well, this has been her job for as long as she remembers." Gon said thoughtfully, but led the four a couple steps back from the archway of the inner gardens.

The girl spoke up in low tones, "Is there another way in?"

Kurapica took one glance at the stone-hardened guardian and agreed that it would be wise to find another way into the Zaoldyeck household.

"Damn! We walked all that way for nothin'," Leorio huffed.

The four retraced the steps from whence they came, feinting surrender to the unyielding Canaria. Luckily, there were groves of trees nearby. When the travelers were sure they were well out of sight, they immediately sought coverage in the leaves and began to head toward their hypothesized direction of the Zaoldyeck mansion. The keeper of the inner gardens knew this, but did not hinder the intruders. They were out of her sight and her area of surveillance. So she no longer considered them her business. Besides, they seemed to be friends of Killua's and interfering with her master's friends could only lead to misunderstandings between him and her.

Meanwhile, the four journeyers hacked away blocking branches to reach their main destination—Killua Zaoldyeck. After an hour or so, the forest groves eventually thinned, giving the four weary pursuers renewed strength in grabbing the overgrown branches aside. In a matter of minutes, a huge mansion and a tremendous granite cathedral-like structure loomed into view, neither of which looked welcoming to the four footsore seekers.

The girl wrinkled her nose, "I place my bet our homesick troublemaker's inside the castle."

Although Gon was the closest to Killua compared with the people beside him, he agreed with the girl's description of Killua.

Leorio wheezed and wiped sweat off his face.

Kurapica dropped a towel on the tall boy's shoulder and said stoically, taunting Leorio, "Tired now aren't we? How 'bout a rest for weak—"

"Shut up!" Leorio sneered, snatching the towel off and tied it around his head to prevent sweat from trickling down his face.

The girl stared pensively at the cathedral-like structure and spoke up, "You three go look in the mansion and I'll go into the castle."

"And leave you to fend for yourself in the Zaoldyeck house of hell?" Leorio inquired, leaning on a tree trunk, giving off the impression that nothing fazed him. He was trying to save his reputation from Kurapica's previous statement.

Gon nodded earnestly, "One of us goes with you; we can double up."

The girl looked thoughtfully at the castle again, "It's only Killua's family."  
She shrugged, "I've dealt with family before."

"—His assassin family," Kurapica pointed out.

"True…" the girl continued.

But at that moment, they noticed a well-dressed man heading towards their direction. For some reason, they did not sense when he started coming for them.

"Cover for me!" she urgently whispered to her three companions, ducked into the underbrush, and disappeared from sight.

They were about to grab her, but seeing that the well-dressed stranger was getting closer by the second, they turned to the man with an apologetic demeanor, emphasized their friendly relations to Master Killua, and explained their goal in coming here.

The well-dressed man turned out to be the Zaoldyeck's head butler. After listening to the three intruders, he eventually understood the gist of their choppy and frantic explanations. The man examined them and led them into the mansion.

As soon as they stepped into the doorway, the three friends realized five other well-dressed men flanking their greeter. If these hosts were hostile, the three guests would be fighting three against six.

Leorio whistled nervously.

Kurapica squared his shoulders and walked in, stepping after Gon. His fingers tensed slightly, ready to pull out his swords any moment.

They were led through glass doors to a well-lit parlor and asked to sit down on a comfortable sofa. A coffee table was set with a bowl of fruit in front of them. Gon eyed the bowl of fruit hungrily and Leorio gave sideway glances at it every once in a while, but none of them dared venture toward the food. The six hosts arranged themselves in a circle around the three travelers and introduced themselves as the butlers of the Zaoldyeck household. Gon looked around in a circle to take all of them in, while the two older boys nodded politely, keeping their emotions masked. Other servants including the twelve year old guardian trickled in to see the intruders.

"Disarm yourselves," the head butler said smoothly, "You are guests inside this mansion and we are merely your hosts."

Leorio distrusted the man, "Then what's the meaning of surrounding us as if we're criminals?"

Kurapica however, carefully put his swords on the coffee table, signaling Leorio to do the same lest they invite unnecessary trouble when they were clearly outnumbered. When misunderstandings happened on a friend's land, which in this case happened to be the estate belonging to the world's topmost assassins, it is better to cooperate first. Fighting is reserved for second resort.

Gon put down his fishing rod, deciding that if there were any outright physical offenses, he and his comrades have ways to defend themselves with hands, feet, and possibly heads. Hand to hand combat was second nature for him.

Leorio sighed, pulled out his two daggers and his suitcase, and placed them on the table.

When all six butlers and the growing number of servants finally understood Gon, Leorio, and Kurapica's purpose on their masters' grounds, they were invited to dine.

The three were brought to a round table where everyone sat together. The servants themselves brought up numerous plates of food and they all ate in silence.

After everyone ate their fill and was content, the head butler spoke up, "We have sent a message to the Zaoldyeck main house stating the arrival of Master Killua's friends. But Master Killua is currently preoccupied. Perhaps a game to pass the time?"

Kurapica spotted the head butler's intent, _Coercion… to keep us from meeting Killua_.

"Preoccupied my ass," Leorio mouthed to Kurapica.

Gon asked honestly, "Do we have a choice?"

The head butler smiled wryly, "The other options aren't nearly as invigorating," signifying an end to their discussion.

The head butler took out a coin. He showed it to them, flicked it in the air, and caught it with a hand. Then he switched his hands around and told them to guess which hand the coin was in, "Right hand or left hand?"

It was easy enough. Gon immediately said, "Right hand."

The head butler held out his right hand. The coin was lying in his palm.

Leorio smiled.

"That was practice," the head butler said, "The game starts now. Whether you guess right or wrong determines whether or not we kill you for intruding on Zaoldyeck grounds."

Gon looked at the man defiantly.

Kurapica's eyes hardened.

Leorio quietly leaned forward, readying himself for whatever might happen.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I, 0WannabeWriter0, do not own Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter X Hunter, his characters, nor his storylines.

/ \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\

Back then, the girl left Gon, Leorio, and Kurapica to fend for themselves at the inner gardens.  
"Cover for me!" the girl urgently whispered to her three companions and stole her way towards the formidable Zaoldyeck castle.

Along the side of the fortress, she saw many doors. She tried each one, hoping for some servant's entrance to slip in. But they were locked. Eventually, she found a rusty, unlocked door and opened it just enough to slide herself in.

It was dim. She took five seconds to adjust her eyes to the surroundings, and deciding no more time could be afforded, she stepped forward. She was in a pantry, but feeling that this place would yield no results in finding Killua, she walked on through the cobwebbed arched doorway and followed the passage out into immense halls.

Not seeing anything reminding her of Killua, much less seeing a living soul, she snuck on. She knew that the Zaoldyecks were a family of the topmost elite assassins, so they could be lurking around, just that she could not see them. But the idea of being caught off guard unable to defend herself left a sour taste in her mouth, so she searched for a way to brighten her surroundings. Spying ancient floor-length draperies in front of her, she quickly grabbed hold of the middle of the curtain and yanked it open by plodding to the other side. As the heavy drapes clacked to the end of their bar, she glanced a shadow of a person behind her. But when she turned her head to look, there were only black and white stone busts, lined up along the hallway.

She let out her breath and let her heart drop back down.

_Past famous assassins_, she mused.

She opened the other half of the drapes, walked carefully to the part of the hallway still in shadow, and reached for the drapes.

"There's a rope you can pull," it was a young boy's voice.

Her eyes flashed wildly for a second before resting on the little boy's frame in traditional Japanese attire. _How old is this boy to have snuck up like that?_ she thought. _Old enough to run around freely and play pranks stealthily_, she sarcastically answered. She furrowed her brows in apprehension.

"So you don't tear off the drapes," he pointed to the rope at the side as he swiftly took in her countenance, mood, and abilities, giving nothing away of himself.

"Oh," the girl said awkwardly, wanting to say something more, but not finding the right words. Instead, she tried to take in his manner and be aware of his thoughts in case of ill will.

She took hold of the rope, pulled the heavy drapes open, and was slightly bitter that a young child could completely have gotten the upper hand if he chose to attack instead of talk.

The boy turned to leave, but before he did, she asked him to wait, "…Where's Killlua?"

He glanced at her and pointed to a small staircase leading downwards.

She looked at the musty staircase dubiously, "Just go down? Is there a certain room or…"

"Just go down," he answered with an almost impossible to distinguish gleam in his eyes.

She wondered if she could trust him, but she was in this kid's house and people in her position who did not trust him probably ended up dead. So she turned her back to him and stepped onto the stairs.

The girl went down two flights of stairs.

At the third level down, she muttered in a breathy voice, "I hope they have elevators going back up. Trust Killua to hide in the deepest corner of his house."

She crept into a room to search for clues because the room seemed to house someone. Two computers were on—one on some obscure island she never heard of and the other on a high-class restaurant search guide for connoisseurs. Two bags of chips were open, one by each computer. She mumbled something about "clogged arteries," then gasped as the back of her neck prickled like the feeling when one stood in front of a crowd. She turned around in defensive stance, preparing to strike, until she realized the figures behind her were not alive. Model figurines cluttered the area beside her. She quickly looked around to see if someone was coming back to the room. Seeing no one, she tiptoed out and continued descending the stairs.

Down one level, she saw another open-door. The lights were off in this room, but she still went in anyways. Models were placed randomly throughout the room. Most had some type of pretty clothing on.

Thinking the best of this mysterious Zaoldyeck, she decided, _Designer, apparently…… Some of these clothes look really nice. I hope they don't belong to Killua_.

When she had enough of looking at fashionable human-sized dolls, she went out and migrated downward.

Sounds drifted in from a certain room. She stealthily pushed the rusted metal door apart and inched in. The sounds were lashes of a whip. With her heart picking up pace, she crept forward and met another flight of stairs down. She slouched, so the stone balcony hid her completely.

An unknown voice taunted its victim, "Come on, tell me to stop… beg me. I know you can't take it anymore."

_What kind of family does this?_ her thoughts scattered wildly.

"Idiot," the victim answered, bored.

Killua's voice registered in the girl's mind. She was shocked, but slightly more comfortable hearing a familiar voice. She reached the bottom of the stairs at that time and stood up straight. A weighty boy perhaps around her age was holding the leather whip in his hands. Killua had both arms chained to some apparatus connected to the ceiling, feet dangling, shirt stripped off, back and front covered in scars. The sight was gruesome enough for the girl to widen her eyes in fear. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Both boys saw her at once.

This time, it was Killua's turn to be shocked.

The heavyset boy whose white collared shirt was unbuttoned at the top immediately asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm—a friend… of Killua's," her own voice echoed strangely in the massive stone dungeon. She knew the Zaoldyecks' visitors were generally bounty hunters, thus were killed during their process of raiding the Zaoldyeck property, so she stressed her friendly relations to Killua. She desperately hoped the boy would not pull one of his "I don't care about you and I don't know you" whims. Right now, the timing of one of those moods would be absolutely distasteful; any other time, it would not matter. She gave him a warning look that purely beamed, _I still want to live_.

The plump boy wiped the sweat off his temple and looked at Killua slyly, "Ahh, so you've been busy busy throughout your tour de world… Illumi totally gave me a different impression of your romp."

Killua masked his shocked expression before anyone even noticed its existence and closed his eyes in annoyance.

Seeing that Killua was not going to respond, the girl continued, attempting to keep things casual, "So I'm going to unchain Killua… and take him with me."

Killua opened his eyes in surprise.

The older boy was also a bit thrown off by her remark, but recovered.

He looked at Killua and smirked his chubby face, "A friend or two, huh."

He turned back to the girl and extended his hand, "Milluki… Zaoldyeck. Bro probably told you about us…"

She felt that Milluki was this slippery kind of guy who one needed to exercise caution when in his vicinity. But being in his domicile, she felt compelled to answer, if not yet take hold of his outstretched hand.

"Uh—uh a bit," she replied distractedly and raised her voice, "How can you do this to your brother?!"

"What," Milluki point-blank stated and took back his untaken hand.

"All this!" she stuttered.

Killua looked embarrassed.

Milluki picked up where she was going, "Ohhhh… we're Zaoldyecks," he stated matter-of-factly, "And besides, it doesn't hurt him anymore."

"… It's true. I'm alright," Killua agreed, not knowing what else to say.

The girl stared at both of them. They were serious. Out in the gardens with Leorio, Kurapica, and Gon, she had truly misestimated his family.

She took one look at Killua's scarred back and reached for his arm, attempting to loosen the encircling chain.

But before she could grab him, Killua yelled, "Don't touch me!"

She stepped away, taken back by his behavior.

The white-haired boy effortlessly unchained himself and quietly said to her while walking to a black metal bar in the corner, "There's electricity running through the chains and through me."

He touched the bar, neutralizing himself, and walked back.

The girl stared, wide-eyed, _Clearly, I haven't seen many things of this world_.

"Gon, Kurapica, and Leorio are outside waiting for you," she did not know what else to say.

Apparently, Milluki knew what to say, and said it smoothly, "He's safe to touch now, but you probably don't want to touch him until he's cleaned up. You can touch me if you want," he extended his arm to her.

She opened and closed her hand, then extended her arm, knowing full well that if she did any action remotely related to flirting, Killua would never let her hear the end of it. And of course Gon would be on Killua's side. They excelled at being persistent brats. But reminding herself that she was in his house and he did not act threatening, perhaps she should take his arm out of politeness, however awkward that felt…

"You don't have to," Killua said pointedly, surprising her. He walked ahead of them.

"Okay, then we'll just walk," she concluded the matter.

Suddenly, an old man stood in the doorway, "Done with your training so soon."

Killua spoke up, "Gramps, we have a guest. I need to clean up. So could you bring her to a room to wait?"

"Your mother has the keys; I'll bring your friend to her," the old man said.

"Alright, whatever," Killua shrugged good-naturedly and left.

_Younger boys_, she sighed inwardly as she and their grandfather walked in the opposite direction, _Can't walk their own friends_.

The grandpa took her to a different set of passageways and stairs than the ones she came down from. Thankfully, there were less stairs going up.

_Right_, she thought, running to keep up with his walking, _I didn't say hi yet. Don't wanna be rude_.

"I don't believe I said hi yet, Mr. Zaoldyeck… Killua's grandpa…" she fished for a reference.

"Gramps," he nodded once.

"Okay."

He opened a door and led her in a luxuriously styled living room, then proceeded to explain the situation to his family sitting there. Four people were inside, lounging on the sofa and chairs—a man, a woman, a young adult, and the little boy from before.

She blinked, the name "Kalluto" rang somewhere from the back of her mind.

He looked at her and went back to fingering the spiked leash in his hands.

The young adult with jet-black hair, who she remembered was Illumi, sent her a cold stare and looked away.

She suddenly felt very self-conscious about her appearance. Undoubtedly, she was flushed, sweaty, and dirty after tramping through half of the Zaoldyeck estate. These four were dressed handsomely. The Father had a mass of long silver hair and he simply observed her.

She raised her hand politely without smiling, "Hello, I'm a friend of Killua's," she said stating first her relationship with their son and then introducing herself.

Gramps looked toward the woman, clearly the mistress of the household and Killua's mother. She was dressed elaborately in a yellow Victorian gown accentuated with a silver mask, making the girl feel as if the woman was dressed for a masquerade affair.

The mother extended her hand, beckoning their guest to take it.

The girl nearly froze at the sight of her, but Gramps gave her a push, implying that she step forward.

She took the woman's gloved hand and they walked out of the room into a well-lit corridor.

/ \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\

**1st Author's Note:** It is interesting to know how old each character is in a story, so here are the ages of the main characters with explanations. Age does not imply anything more than character profile in this story.

Gon: 12 years old  
According to the anime, Gon starts out as a 12 year old.

Killua: 12 years old  
According to the anime, Killua starts out as a 12 year old.

Leorio: 18 years old  
It is known that Leorio's goal is to become a Doctor and that he is in his teens. He must be of age to register as a student in a University that will eventually take him to Medical School.

Kurapica: 18 years old  
It is known that Kurapica's goal is to avenge the deaths of his clansmen and that he is in his teens. He and Leorio seem to be the same age, so that will indicate Gon and Killua as a pair of close friends and Kurapica and Leorio as a pair of close friends. Also, someone who is confident enough to take revenge on the Genei Ryodan must have some level of maturity, physically and mentally. Kurapica does not act like a young teen. I'm sure he was a young teen when his people were brutally murdered, so he carried the feral hatred of a young teen in his 18 year old self. But that is the only part of him that is quote-and-quote "young."

The Girl: 15 years old  
I deemed 15 years old as the best age for the girl because I am not emphasizing certain characters over others. Gon, Killua, Leorio, and Kurapica are equally important. If she is 12 years old or younger, she is going to have a hard time hanging out with 18 year olds. If she was 18 or older, she will have difficulty being with 12 year olds. So I opted for the "best fit" solution and put her smack dab in the middle-- three years apart from the youngest and the oldest. As a 15 year old:  
1. She bridges the age gap. And it is easier for her to befriend all four main characters.  
2. I am ecstatic over the idea of her being an older sister / friend to Gon and Killua. In this way, she's buddy enough to play pranks with the two boys and is old enough to kick their butts when they're being overly immature.  
3. I relish the notion of the girl being "just another girl" to Leorio and Kurapica. Leorio and Kurapica are too old to develop any interest in her. And at 18 years old, Leorio and Kurapica will not develop enough sibling affection towards her to act as her older brothers. Truth be told, she is not as mature as Leorio and Kurapica, but she communicates seriously with them in appropriate situations.  
4. THE BIG IF-- If one day I become incredibly bored in the far far future... and the world has grown old... and-- you get the point. I will create annoying and unnecessary drama and make her fall in love with one of them… or the other way around... or have unrequited love. Basically, this is one way to keep the girl's options open. When they are older, three year age gaps are not so prominent. Now, before you associate me with sin and bully me, just keep in mind that it is really hard to choose one main guy character over another. It is one way of saying-- Gon, Killua, Leorio, and Kurapica are all really cool and they deserve to be the center of attention in my stories.  
Oh, and if you're not a fan of stories containing romance, be at peace. My center characters and side characters will not act "inappropriately." If there are any "more than friendship" feelings, they will be mild.

**2nd Author's Note**: In reality, I personally think the five characters are a little young. Adding 4 to each character's age fits their actions more. From personal experience, 12 year olds are not as mature as Gon and Killua, 15 year olds are not as mature as the girl, and 18 year olds are not as mature as Leorio and Kurapica. But all the stories I have read (in my opinion) seem to contain characters far younger than what their actions dictate. So I will follow suit.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I, 0WannabeWriter0, do not own Yoshihiro Togashi's Hunter X Hunter, his characters, nor his storylines.

/ \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\ / \\

Mrs. Zaoldyeck was odd, the girl thought… not in a horrifying way yet, but strange all the same.

Being held by the hand and listening to Mrs. Zaoldyeck made the girl feel as if she was growing younger by the second.  
_I thought assassins were supposed to be terse_, the girl's head sang with the woman's sermons as they passed room after room down the corrider. Mrs. Zaoldyeck truly conversed far and wide.

The girl responded mainly with nods and smiles and soon discovered that the mother's excessive discourse was due to her desire for a daughter—namely, a girl who she could have mother-daughter time with.

When the fourth child came and was a son, Mrs. Zaoldyeck was very disappointed.  
"Of course I love them all deeply," she reassured the girl, "But you can't spend mother-daughter time with them."

The girl nodded as understandingly as she could. She tried to picture Mrs. Zaoldyeck spending mother-son time, which was laughable when she got to Killua. She could imagine the young assassin throwing a fit at the mention of mother-son time for him. She carefully stored that piece of information in her mind—a perfect opportunity to get back at that arrogant brat for future grievances.

Mistress Zaoldyeck and the girl arrived at a doorway. When the maid unlocked the door, the girl hesitantly stepped in, unsure of what she would find inside.

Mrs. Zaoldyeck showed the girl how to ring for a maid and rang for one to bring fresh clothes for their guest. The mistress then told the girl to ring for a maid to join up with the family at the main hall. By family, the girl took it that Killua would be there, so she did not further inquire about him. With all necessary procedures introduced, the mistress left.

The maid soon delivered an armful of towels and frilly dresses that reminded her of doll's clothing and left the girl alone in a room that looked larger and emptier than when she first arrived. It was not large enough to produce echoes, but enough to feel this intense privacy and stillness. The elaborate decor was in a style that she could not quite place, similar to a European style.

She went to the bathroom and took a shower, speeding up as she was finishing in case the Zaoldyecks expected their guest to meet them quickly.

She rang for a maid just as she stepped into a dress, "Could you take me to the main hall?"

The maid looked her over and said, "No, that won't do. Your hair's a mess. And the dress you're wearing… this dress looks better on you," she unfolded another dress, "Less frills… and the color darker."

_Really…_ the girl thought, _They all kind of look the same… frills and colors_. But she did not object, and so switched to the recommended gown.

The maid saw that the girl was indecisive about her hairstyle and kindly did the girl's hair. The girl let out a relieved sigh because in truth, her knowledge on fancy hairstyles was limited. She was glad she did not have to flat out ask for help.

Then the girl was told she was ready.

The two walked through a tangle of passageways that ended at the Zaoldyeck Main Hall. The maid pulled open the curtain and led her around the corner to the Zaoldyecks. The girl, never forgetting that this was _the_ family of assassins, albeit a family of extremely well-dressed assassins, greeted them with a reserved smile.

Mistress Zaoldyeck bustled about the girl, "Oh, you could've chosen one of those light-hued dresses. Our son, Milluki here—," she stepped behind her son and placed her hands on his shoulders, "—designed all the gowns I brought over for you. I would've thought a gown with more frills suited you more."

_Who would've thought_, the girl thought wryly, _two different women with two different opinions_.

Killua, in a stark white collared shirt and black tie and slacks, was standing up from the sofas, ready to move to the dinner table.  
The girl was pleasantly surprised; he looked sharp in his attire.

Their eldest son, Illumi, was dressed in a fancy suit. He coldly glanced at her and disinterestedly walked ahead.

The girl instinctively held her small jacket closer to her body for warmth and looked in the opposite direction.

It was where Milluki happened to be standing. Dressed as if attending a business meeting, he walked over and put on a gallant air, "Forgive my brother, he tends to be this way at mealtimes."

Illumi shot him a look of pure hatred.  
But Milluki pretended not to notice. Instead, he extended his arm, "Care to take up on the previous offer?"

The girl stared nervously at Milluki, _What previous offer?_  
And then she remembered him holding his hand out to her saying, "…You can touch me if you want."  
Sure, it was a friendly and courteous gesture, but…  
She looked around and saw the youngest son, Kalluto, staring at them and reading their every move.

"Maybe some other time," she whispered apologetically and smiled widely.

They sat down at the dinner table and began eating.  
Mr. Zaoldyeck sat at one head and Gramps at the other. Mrs. Zaoldyeck sat next to her husband, followed by Kalluto and then Milluki. On the other side of Mr. Zaoldyeck were Illumi, Killua, and the empty space that the girl was ushered to.

The girl felt muffled, eating in silence with the assassin family. Besides, the sun was already setting; she had intruded on the assassins' residence long enough.  
Remembering her purpose in coming here, she lightly elbowed Killua, who was eating calmly, and reminded him that Gon, Leorio, and Kurapica were waiting outside for them.

Killua understood.  
After a moment's pause, he announced to his family, "I'll be leaving after dinner with my friend."

He received no response.

"There are people waiting for us outside," he continued. He looked up at his mother and then father.

Master Zaoldyeck looked at his son and slightly inclined his head, "We'll talk after dinner."

After eating, Mr. and Mrs. Zaoldyeck, Killua, and the girl stayed seated at the table to talk, while the rest of the family went to the sofas and lounges a couple paces over.

Killua and the girl explained their travels with Gon, Leorio, and Kurapica.

Then the girl was asked to wait at the reclining sofas while the parents brought up some serious matters with their son.

The girl got up from the dinner table, walked over to the sofas, and sat down at the edge. She looked at Gramps, Illumi, Milluki, and Kalluto. Each Zaoldyeck went about his business, neither one paying the other much attention.  
She followed suit and leaned back to rest her eyes.

Killua, however, was under quite a different atmosphere from the girl's relaxed one. Fidgeting under the scrutiny of mother and father, Killua had one thing to tell his parents, "I don't want to take over the Zaoldyeck assassin title… It's not what I want."

"Then what do you want?" his mother asked.

"I don't know, but—… Am I allowed to say I'm trying to find out what I want to do by going out to the world?" Killua said as if rehearsed.

"Don't say it unless you mean it," his father said surprisingly calm.

"Oh darling, maybe we shouldn't have—I mean, he's only twelve—" she sighed.

Killua looked down, uncomfortable at his limitations in his parents' eyes.

Mr. Zaoldyeck spoke up, "So you've made a couple of friends."

The boy looked up eagerly, "Yeah," and started personalizing his adventures with the four people he met since he last left Kukuru Mountain.

Both parents listened interestedly and even smiled.

His mother inquired, "If Gon was your first friend, why wasn't he the one coming to get you?"

"I thought Gon would come with her. I don' know," he looked at his friend waiting at the lounge chairs and shrugged indifferently.

When Killua got to the end of his stories, Mr. Zaoldyeck told him, "If you want to, go."

His mother told him squarely, "I'm proud of you."

Killua nodded once.

With that, the young master and the girl packed their belongings and left the Zaoldyeck household.

Killua's father, however, said surely to his wife, "He is still young, so he won't think of this, but he'll return one day… when he finds how the world labels him because of his name. Because of whom he was born to be, people will hate him. For an assassin has no friends."

The woman held her husband's hands.

_ \ -- -- -- -- -- / _

Killua sighed as he and the girl walked through the gardens. The night air outside was cool and silent—silent not in a muffling way, but in a catch-your-breath kind of way.

The girl noticed his sighing and looked up.  
She broke the silence, "Not quite as bad as you described them to be. Hey, we're out in one afternoon."

"I don' know. They seemed to accept the fact that I'm getting off Kukuru Mountain and that's that," Killua answered.

The girl continued, attempting to generalize Killua's problems, "Family is always complicated."

Killua was deep in thought for a minute and said, "I told'em I didn't want to take over the Zaoldyeck assassin title."

Personally, the girl felt that it was a good choice on his part. Traveling with someone whose life goals did not involve becoming an assassin certainly felt much safer and smoother on her conscience. But she knew that this was a big decision for her friend, so she just looked at him, expecting him to elaborate.

When he stayed silent, she spoke up, "So what is the first thing you're going to do now that you have your parents' permission to officially take a break from home?"

Killua thought for a while. What was he to do indeed? He wanted to say "I don't know," but he felt as if he had been saying that phrase a lot recently.

"...I don't know," he finally said.  
Then, deciding to show off some arrogance, "Meet with the three o' course! Where've _you _been?!"

The girl snorted. _And the brat's back_, she thought.  
"You know, stay home. Outside your house you're a brat. Inside, you're pretty much momma's boy. Perhaps too much mother-son time—"

Killua stopped in his tracks; she knew she hit the target.

"Say another word— and you'll regret it," he challenged dangerously, but awkwardly.

"Horrible!" she feigned terror and suppressed a guffaw.

Killua clenched his teeth and hurriedly changed the topic, "Where'd you say the three were?"

"I told you already," she said between laughs and loud hiccups, "I left them near _that_ mansion," she pointed.

However, their mood changed when Killua and the girl stepped closer to the mansion.

Killua knew some servants should have greeted him by now.

The girl hoped the three boys did not meet any real danger. If those three came out of the situation sane, she would be blamed for leaving them when they actually needed help.  
Yet, the cool logic of reason reminded her, _What can licensed hunters not fight off?_

They went in through a side door because the front door was locked and trekked towards the parlor where all the servants seemed to be. They carefully opened the sliding glass door to find Kurapica, Leorio, and Gon surrounded by a crowd of Zaoldyeck servants.

"Killua," Gon said as soon as he saw them.

"This… is how you treat your friends," Kurapica stated, his original anger replaced with a hint of amusement upon seeing Killua and the girl.

"Call 'em off! What're ya waiting for?!" Leorio growled.

But Killua did not even need to call the servants off. The servants immediately stepped back.

Killua explained that the five of them were to leave the Zaoldyeck household and that he talked to his parents already. The servants buzzed around their master asking him questions.

The girl went over to the three friends who seemed to have gotten the unlucky side of this visit to Kukuru Mountain.  
The least she could do was apologize, "I'm really sorry to have left you guys here."

The three boys did not respond.

"Well, at least we came to the rescue," she joked.  
"—Would it help if I said it was really awkward for me to have barged in the Zaoldyeck castle?"

No one answered.  
She closed her mouth tightly.

The girl started protesting, "… You guys—" and that was when she caught sight of Leorio looking at her dress.

Suddenly, wearing the dress felt unnatural. Whether it was because of the queer designs of the dress or how unfit it looked on her, she guessed both.

She took her pack and went over to one of the servant girls out of earshot from her friends, "Where's the nearest bathroom?"

She headed in that direction. Inside the bathroom, she undid her hair and used her own band to tie it up. Then she changed into her original attire, even though it was filthy. She planned to wash it some other time.

She walked up to Killua amidst the bustling servants and butlers, wondering if he was ready to leave.

Killua looked at her, "You changed?" and looked down at his clothes, stark white collar and black-colored slacks. He fingered the knot of his tie, attempting to loosen it from his neck.

"It's okay," she quickly waved away his concern and stepped back, looking at all the servants of the household well-wishing their master on his official journey out into the world.  
Killua was surprising, she thought; for that matter, all four boys were. But she still did not expect to see such a warm side of Killua. It seemed he had a good-sized family outside of the Zaoldyecks.

As they walked towards the outer gardens, Gon asked the girl, "Why did you change?"

The girl wrinkled her eyebrows, confused, _Change__ what__? _  
She turned around and noticed Leorio and Kurapica standing beside Gon, _Still angry that I ditched them?_

"—Out of your dress," Gon explained.

_Uh_, her mind scrambled for an answer. _Ugh_, she thought.  
"…It'll get dirty if I travel wearing that," she said and resumed her walking pace.

Gon was not finished talking, "You should wear it again sometime… it doesn't have to be that one, but something like that."

"Why don't you go wear a suit?" she shot back. _Children are seriously getting smart-mouthed these days_, she looked back to see if the twelve year old was joshing her.  
Seeing no change of emotion on his face, she nodded.  
Then nodded some more.

Kurapica and Leorio shifted their eyes from the scene to each other.  
Leorio cocked his eyebrow and sneered, "Child's play."  
Kurapica walked on, putting his hands in his pockets, "Screw these kids."


End file.
